Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Pastor Leonard Wambazu from Mbikko, in Njeru Municipality, has been detained, as Police intensify the case of kidnap and eventual death a student of YWCA Buwambo Campus in Wakiso district.
The 22-year-old student, Brina Nalule was allegedly kidnapped from the Old Taxi Park in Kampala while on her way to school on Sunday.
Police have held the pastor because phone records indicate that Nalule had been talking to Wambazu, moments before she was kidnapped. The pastor has not denied that, saying she talked to her moments before she was set to get on a tazi in Kampala.
Her parents received calls from her number the same night informing them that she had been kidnapped. The kidnappers were demanding a ransom of 40 million Shillings which was later reduced to 10 million Shillings with a condition that it’s paid within 24 hours.
But the parents reported the matter to police prompting the Flying Squad Unit to start tracking her number. However, before police could get a breakthrough, they received a call from Kabawo zone in Mutundwe notifying them about a body of an unidentified woman which had been dumped in a bush.
It was later identified as Nalule’s body by her parents. The same night the kidnappers called Nalule’s parents using a different number inquiring whether they had found her body.
Police later picked up Pastor Wambazu for questioning. In his statement, Wambazu says Nalule left his place in Mabira for Kampala at around 5 pm, a day before the alleged kidnap.
“On reaching the taxi park, we talked and she told me she was going to board a taxi and go spend the night at a Friend’s place. That is the last time I heard from her,” says the pastor.
Statements from the deceased’s friend show that apart from being Nalule’s guardian who was paying her school fees, Wambazu has been Nalule’s lover.
The Kampala Metropolitan police spokesperson, Luke Owoyesigyire says police is moving forward with investigations into the murder. “We have one suspect but we are pushing on the investigations,” Owoyesigyire told URN. The murder of Nalule brings to two the number of women kidnapped and killed this year.
The first victim was 28-year- old Susan Magara who was kidnapped along Kabaka Anjagala road in Lubaga Division on 7th February 2018 as she was heading to her Lungujja based apartment. Her kidnappers killed her and dumped her body on the Southern bypass between Kigo and Kajjansi three weeks after receiving a ransom of 700 million Shillings from her parents.
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